Kuman: K2m of DSIP funds for schools

By HELEN TARAWA
MPs are expected to use K2 million, which is 20 per cent of the district services improvement programme (DSIP) funds, to build infrastructure in schools, Education Minister Nick Kuman says.
Kuman, in response to overcrowding in schools as a result of the introduction of free education by the government, said that funding fort education was factored into the DSIP.
“When it comes to building of schools and infrastructure, these are the responsibility of the districts and the provincial governments,” he said.
“The districts they are expected to look after the schools from prep all the way to primary and the provinces are to take care of the high schools and secondary schools.
“We have done that but at the same time we encourage some of the MPs to make sure that we put some of the programmes and there is direct intervention,” Kuman said.
He said that in the last term of Parliament, the government made available K5 million per MP, K2.5 million for education and K2.5 for health services.
“It’s a direct intervention by the government under the GoPNG funding and we give it to the members,” Kuman said.
“The schools were supposed to receive support from their members to build the facilities and we want to see that a lot more schools are built.
“If you look at the TFF, 30 per cent of that money, it’s K180 million a year so that money goes straight into the school accounts.”
Kuman said 30 per cent of that money was the infrastructure component.
“Over the years, we have expanded almost K3.4 billion and those monies have gone directly to our schools – totalling K3.7 billion.
“There are exemplary schools that have done well with the money from TFF.” Kuman said when the programme was first started, it was not fine-tuned and not done well but after six years of implementation, they were seeing some good results.